Great Computer Tips In 1.2.3. Steps

Windows Media Player 12 - 'Server Execution Failed'

2012-08-06T10:42:00.000+08:00

Windows Media Player is the most reliable player you can count on to play your songs and movies (except for some video files). But after installing or removing some programs, WMP failed to open when I clicked it. And when I tried to directly open a MP3 file, it would throw me a 'Server execution failed.' message window. So I went to search online for solutions.

Clicking on the first link that I see on the search engine, it brought me to Microsoft Q & A Forum. 3 things it suggested to the other user with the same problem :

Go to 'Turn Windows Feature on or off' and reinstall WMP
Stop the WMP Network Sharing Service
Do some sort of thing with the Command Prompt

Neither of the proposed solutions worked... Luckily, I found a Windows 7 Forum, and a user called 'PsychoBob' gave a simple answer to solve the problem. And this time it actually worked! So here's what he asked to do :

Click 'Start' > 'Accessories'

Right click on Command Prompt > choose "run as administrator"

Type regsvr32 jscript.dll , press 'Enter' key

Type regsvr32 vbscript.dll, press 'Enter' key

Wala! Now you can use Windows Media Player again!

Note : It is very IMPORTANT that you run Command Prompt as an administrator, or it won't have the rights to read or access files

Reference : PsychoBob, Re: Media Player 12 - "Server execution failed", WINDOWS 7 FORUMS, Retrieved Aug 6 2012 from URL http://windows7forums.com/windows-7-support/43787-media-player-12-server-execution-failed.html

Earth To Skype, Hello??? Can't Hear Call In Skype?

2012-04-29T12:51:00.000+08:00

Recently I cannot hear my calls on Skype. Happened twice in different situations. My friend can't hear me in one call, and the other call was that I can't hear my friend. Luckily, I was able to fix both situations through the Skype settings itself and not reinstalling my drivers or any other ways. So here's what I did :

Click 'Options...'

Choose different devices for Speaker till both sides can hear.

Choose different devices for Microphone till both can hear each other.

Save to confirm.

Click 'Tools' > 'Options...'
Choose 'Audio Settings'
If you can hear but can't be heard by others, choose different device from 'Microphone' drop-down list.
If you can't hear others but they can hear you, choose different device from 'Speakers'
Adjust volume with the blue circle OR tick 'Automatically adjust microhone/speaker settings' until you get the optimal sound.
Remember to click 'Save'.

That's it! If you know other ways of getting round this problem, please do share your solutions in the comments.

Convert Powerpoint SlideShow to Normal PowerPoint (pps to ppt)

2011-12-29T00:18:00.000+08:00

You saved a PowerPoint file in SlideShow format, and now you want to edit it. How?? Well, I can tell you that NO CONVERTER IS NEEDED! You just have to rename the extension of the file. Why do that?
Because the content is practically the same, just that SlideShow only SHOWS and no EDIT allowed. Now just follow these steps, and you'll be on your way:

Open any folder.
Click 'Tools' > 'Folder Options' > 'View' tab.
Untick 'Hide extensions for known file types'.
Click 'OK' to confirm and close window.
Now, find that file and rename .pps into .ppt (or .ppsx into pptx)

And you're all set to go!

Source : Does a PPS (PowerPoint Show) need PowerPoint or a Viewer to play? Can I edit a PPS?

QuickTips! : Alternative Pen Drive? Your Phone!

2011-12-16T23:11:00.000+08:00

Do you really fancy carrying those pen drives around? What happens if you lose them? Of course, data is lost. So the best way would be to use your phone! True or not? For me it is. Since most people are using smart phones - and smart phones are suppose to mimic PCs, just use your phones to carry your data around!

Smart phones WERE meant to replace PC as the mobile version of it. It's just that not many people (that I
know) are really utilising this method. With this thought in mind, there shouldn't be any extra devices hanging around in your pockets. You don't have to think about those stack of pen drives that you keep buying because you're running out of space every time you use one up. And it's the best way to transfer documents from mobile device to it's destination (Bluetooth!). Plus, you can edit those files on the way with free apps or built-in office apps in your phone these days.

It should be a notice however, that I intend this method only for files which only take up an adequate amount of space and not files with >50MB each! Documents like Word, PDF and Excel or MP3 songs rarely exceeds that kind of space.

Doing projects should be a breeze when transferring files between colleagues, since you can do both by Bluetooth, by USB cable and also through the Internet on your phone. So use your phone!

//Think Simple.//

Presents For Thoughts

2011-12-05T11:29:00.001+08:00

Christmas is coming! 'Tis the season for giving and receiving! Men and women and children alike will be pondering on the presents they will receive this year. As we all know, both the opposite sex have different tastes for different stuffs. Men will want cool gadgets, women will thirst for gorgeous accessories, most of all, children will want awesome toys!

It's best when you really know what gift to give to that special someone in your heart. And though this blog
is about techs and stuff, I would like to share a few thoughts of mine on what to do when you're thinking of buying a Christmas present this year.

Think about his or her interests. It's a common idea, but we must never forget it. Imagine a die-hard Korean fan who likes all the entertainment on dancing and soap shows, like SNSD, Girls Generation, Nickhun, Lie Game, Winter Sonata... (okay, I'm outdated on Korean stuff, forgive me). So, it wouldn't fit the genre at all if you buy him or her a Rock & Roll Song Collection of Gene Simmons or a poster of BTR. Think about that.

Useful or decorative? You buy a book for that friend of yours, because you'll know he or she needs it. Like for example, you know his a messy guy (I know I am), so you buy a book entitled 'Managing Mess For Dummies'. Make sure you know it won't offend him though. You can even buy cabinets for him to store his stuffs. And others just like to fill their space with nice stuff, like fancy lamps or fan posters on their walls. Another example would be kids. Kids like dinosaurs (well, some do, I still do actually). So from that idea, you choose whether to buy a book that tells all the wonders about dinosaurs, or buy a collectible item like a dinosaur model of a Velociraptor for the kids to decorate their tables!

On budget? How much are you willing to spend on your gifts? Is it too much? Or are you just being a cheapskate? Find that out before going out for gifts, or you'll end up using your credit card.For me, I would prefer that it is priced at no more that 50$, it's a reasonable range to me. Having to buy an expensive gift doesn't always mean you show a bigger affection for that person. Money can't buy love yo. So be reasonable with the prices of the gifts.

It's the thought that counts. No matter what gifts you buy at the end, it doesn't really matter. It doesn't have to be that EXACT gift that he or she wants, and it doesn't NEED to be very special like a limited edition T-shirt or shoes. You got a good gift for that person, you show that you care for that person, and that is all that matters.

Well, that should do. There are few more things to add but I feel that these are the first to be considered. Hope you have a good time picking out presents for people and enjoying that moment of satisfaction from giving that present to that special someone!

Fancy A Lift To Space?

2011-12-04T20:09:00.001+08:00

Can you believe the world's first space port is here already? Yes! Years ago people dreamt of having to go to space without needing the special skills or purpose of conducting research in space. They just want to have their holiday up above with the stars!

Currently, Spaceport America is the company that pioneers this idea. Beginning with construction on 17 June 2009, Richard Branson has managed to build the first commercialized space port in the state of New Mexico. The terminal was said to have cost $209m to be completed! Their website can be found here and twitter here.

But right now, I believe the tickets will be sell at a very high price, considering you're going to outer space. Because of that, the first space tourists on this commercial flight will very well be rich people. Nevertheless, when more of this kind of commercial ports are constructed, the middle-class will finally be able to afford it. To infinity and beyond!

P.S. I do not own the pic, it belongs to someone else.

Time After Time? Facebook Not Loading?

2011-12-02T10:08:00.001+08:00

2 days ago I tried logging in from my old laptop, which is about, 8 years old? I haven't tried using it for 6++ months, and I finally awaken the old dinosaur back to life. The thing is, when you leave a computer in a state of hibernation for so long, the components start to degrade -especially the clock battery.

So that 2 days ago when I tried logging in to Facebook from my old comp, it somehow only show texts and and not the whole interface. I figured it was the browser not being compatible with the site anymore. Reinstalled them, and I still get no positive feedback. Then I went to check the site certificate which keeps popping up and I found this:

Yeah, what the heck. So there are 2 things to keep in mind here:

Never leave your computer 'dead' for too long.
If you do, there would be ways to resolve this:

Right - click on the time on the far right of your taskbar.
Choose "Adjust Date/Time". (Sorry, this is meant for Win XP, you can try out on Vista & 7)
Set manually of the time on the first page, or
Click on "Internet Time" tab > "Update Now" (make sure to choose your time zone correctly)

There, that should do the trick. Hope you have a good time with your friends and family today!

Yeah Man!

2011-12-02T01:36:00.001+08:00

WOW, my goodness! I have left the site in a state of limbo for so long! Well, I had to put my studies first, otherwise I would be on the Internet lingering around. Most of the posts are done when the BIG exams are over. So this time, I'm hoping I would be able to bring about some difference, maybe improvements to to the methods. Well, wish you all a Happy Holiday!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T09:46:00.001+08:00

Christmas has come again this year round, continue enjoying your holidays and may you all have a blessed new year! Here are some quotes telling the story of the birth of Jesus :

"And she brought forth her first-born son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn." ~ Luke 2: 7

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord." ~ Luke 2: 11

"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good will toward men." ~ Luke 2: 13-14

QuickTips! : Manage Folders In Hotmail Disappeared?

2010-12-01T06:00:00.003+08:00

it's right there!

'Manage folders' option in hotmail disappeared? I think not! hotmail have done some cleaning up on their interface look. In doing so, they compacted everything into their respective functions. The 'manage folders' function has never disappeared, how else are you going to control all your folders?

Hover your mouse to the 'Folders' word
Click the gear button
'Manage folders' and other functions are right there!

Although you might need some adjusting to the mail features every time they change their looks, you'll get the hang of it soon enough.

MythTips : Hold External Hard Disk Vertically

2010-11-30T06:00:00.002+08:00

It’s just a guess. if people says that disconnecting your external hard drive without safely removing it first, the needle would drop on the still spinning hard disk and cause corruption.

Normally you would of course just did the ‘Safely Remove’ procedure first, but what if you can’t eject it?
The annoying ‘Generic Volume’ can’t eject problem. So of course you have to remove it by force, but if you’re scared of the reading needle scratching the disk, why not hold it vertically? The needle wouldn’t land down on the disk. Then again, it’s just my hunch, whether this is proven to work, I’ll leave it to your comments.

Solution : Hyperlink in MS PowerPoint

2010-11-28T06:00:00.001+08:00

Thanks to Stanley for this post. Now if you want to make a hyperlink in PowerPoint to go to another slide or open a file :

right click object to choose 'hyperlink' select file/slides in your show

Right-click the object you want to make a link
Choose ‘Hyperlink’
Choose whether you want to open a file or just redirect to another slide

That's should be simple.

Solution : Switching User Without Disconnecting Internet

2010-11-26T00:00:00.001+08:00

Thanks to Andrew for this post. Downloading stuffs from the internet, and you thought it would be safe to change to another user. Upon returning to that user (that’s downloading stuffs), you realised the connection was cut during the switch.

Too bad, it’s too late, but you can fix that. What you need to do is do a bit of tweaking with your registry and you’ll be able to switch without disconnecting. Obviously, the first steps would be:

Click 'Start' > 'Run'
Type regedit
Navigate to : HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SOFTWARE/Microsoft/Windows NT/CurrentVersion/Winlogon
Right-click the empty area on the right-hand pane
Choose 'New/String Value'
Name it KeepRasConnections
Double-click the new key & set it to '1'

There, if you followed the steps carefully, you should be fine with the changes you’ve made.

Source : http://www.computing.net/answers/windows-xp/switching-users-disconnects-interne/37747.html

Twitter!

2010-11-24T00:00:00.021+08:00

Hey, now gctips too have a twitter page for you to follow and stay updated! Ask questions while you're on the go. It's another great way for those with twitter accounts to get connected with this blog. We value any feedback you can give to improve this blog.

MiniTips -> QuickTips!

2010-11-23T23:00:00.001+08:00

Hey, 'MiniTips' is changing to 'QuickTips!' ! Just the name's changed, much more appealing, you'll still get the same great content. Hope you'll like the new name!

MiniTips : Convert Text Into Table Form In MS Word

2010-11-21T00:17:00.002+08:00

You typed a bunch of words and few minutes later you thought, “Crap, this looks better in table”. So what are you gonna do? Make new table and move it all in? Try this alternative :

Note: This is for MS Office 2007 and above

Highlight the texts
Click 'Insert'
Click 'Table' > ‘Convert text to table’

//Think Simple.//

Download & Convert Videos Online

2010-08-18T23:44:00.001+08:00

Hey, I found another useful website to download videos on-line. Like I said about downloading Youtube videos and converting them into MP3 on-line, this one also download videos but is much more flexible than the others that I've found:

Download videos from any websites, like Youtube or Metacafe whatever, as long as it has videos in it!

Convert into wide variety of video formats, like MP4, MP3, WMV, AVI, AAC and so on.

Upload your own file. That's right, your off-line converter doesn't works? send to this website and it'll do the job for you!

Fast.....my download speed for a single file is 1 min using this service, what's yours?

So, all you need to type & click is :

Go to www.clipconverter.cc , here
Copy paste link into 'Media URL'
Click 'Continue'
Choose your desired format
Click 'Start!' below...& done!

So there you go, an online converter that does wonders.

World Cheapest Laptop Is In India

2010-08-03T19:05:00.000+08:00

Believe it or not, India developers now have made an iPad-like laptop selling at just the price of $35. Features of it includes :

Linux OS
Touch-screen
2GB RAM
Memory card instead of hard disk
Wi-Fi
USB ports
Runs either on battery power or solar power
Weighs 1.5kg

It was hoped that this laptop would benefit students throughout schools in the country with 500 Youtube-based courses already available online. Government are also trying to reduce the current price till $10.

Disadvantage is that the laptop contains games which might conflict with the purpose of implementation of the laptop in schools. So, what do you think of this laptop?

Source : http://www.robaid.com/gadgets/india-is-developing-a-35-dollar-computer-for-students.htm

MiniTips : A Liiiiiiitle Help In MS Word Tables

2010-07-31T01:15:00.000+08:00

Using the 'Tab' button is useful when it comes to document editing. the 'Tab' button can be used to make 'jumps' in sentences. BUT, this function doesn't works when you're in a table doesn't it? When you're in the table, Try THIS,

'Ctrl + Tab'

Next, to make a small table in the table, you don't have to go all the way to the top to inset a new table. Use the 'modulus' function on your keyboard. While you're in the table, press:

'|' > 'Space' > '|' > 'Enter'

//Think Simple.//

Solution : Ways To Download Videos WITHOUT Any Programs

2010-06-25T00:20:00.000+08:00

Howdy folks. Another requested solution for a friend of mine, Miss 'S.L.' :P . In many other posts I've seen, people wrote about PROGRAMS that can download videos from video-hosting sites like YouTube etc etc. So, I try to turn things around by suggesting to you all to download videos WITHOUT any programs.

In my opinion, programs increase clutters of files on computers and risks of getting spywares or viruses. Programs also have to be started in order to download videos from sites.

Pointing out some advantages of program-free downloading, it's because :

No settings to check in programs,
Saves space on your comp,
No software downloads needed, just bookmarking (you'll see what I mean),
& Simple (well, almost all of them)

Not to delay any more, here are the few ways of program-free video downloading :

As easy as 'copy + paste'. Copy your video link in the address bar. Then, paste into one of these sites, keepvid.com, gazzump.com or vixy.net . I would recommend vixy.net or gazzump.com 'cause it offers conversion to other video formats.

Give to receive (videos of course). Just add these words 'kiss', 'pwn' or 'kick' (without the '') into 'www.[here]youtube.com/wateveryourewatching' in the address bar of the video & hit 'Enter'.

DIY steps for geeks. Did you know rendered videos stays on your comp? That's why online videos that has been fully rendered can still be played in your browser offline. This'll be pretty tough, but easy too if you just take your time. Here it goes... :

Make sure 'hidden files & folders' is unticked
Open & Play the video in your browser (UNTIL THE VIDEO IS FULLY RENDERED)
My Computer > Local Disk (C:) > *USERNAME* > Local Settings > Temp
Make a shortcut to the 'Temp' folder & put on your desktop
In 'Temp' folder, find files starts with 'fla' (ex: fla7D.tmp)
Copy the last 'fla' file ('cause it's the last video you played) to desktop
Rename 'fla' file you COPIED to DESKTOP (ex: fla7D.tmp -> name.flv) ...& done!

Source :

MiniTips : A Secure Search Engine Site For You

2010-06-05T01:16:00.000+08:00

Did you notice? Google now also has it's own secure search engine website now. But I still wouldn't recommend it, since people worried about most is Google itself collecting our data. So having a secure Google search site with Google itself as the person we're scared the most, what's the point then?

Google secure site Ixquick privacy-protected site

Enter the websites through the 'proxy' button to use the feature

There is, however, another search engine that keeps your privacy, called Ixquick @ Ixquick.com . This site was awarded as one of the most secured website. Why? That's because unlike other sites, Ixquick don't keep your search history, they delete it. And besides that, they combine the searches on every search engine, Yahoo, Google, Bing, Astalavista, etc...

Recently, Ixquick added a new proxy service, which allows you to stay hidden all the way till you reach other websites, after leaving Ixquick. So, my conclusion is that Ixquick, is still a site that can be put on a trust more than Google's secure search site. If you have the chance, start using Ixquick now.

Solution : Recover Deleted (Or Formatted) Files

2010-05-29T16:00:00.004+08:00

Ahh!! It's good to be back!! Yeah I took this from Iron Man 2, the movie's just freaking awesome! Anyways, back to the point.

This is another Solutions post to answer the guy named 'kuku' through cbox. So basically, he/she asked whether a person can recover his files back after he/she permanently delete it, or after emptied out from the Recycle Bin. Well, yes you can, but you'll need to do it quick, here's why.

When you store your file on a disk, the file is 'locked'. So when there are new files to write on the disk, it won't overwrite the files that have been 'locked', to show that it is still being used and not deleted yet by the user.

When you delete a file, you remove the 'lock'. So when new files are being written, it is given the permission to overwrite the 'unlocked' files. That is why deleted files are still recoverable, they still exist on the disk, but is exposed to the danger of being overwritten. And here is the ending part of why you have to QUICKLY recover before other files overwrites it.

Here's a drawing of mine to show what I just said,

There are a few utilities here that is can be used for recovering files, one of them is 'Tuneup Utilities'.

Steps :

Download from Hotfile (choose 'Regular Download')
Install
Register with the serial given
Find the utility that let's you recover files
Go through the easy steps given ...& done!

As a reminder, again, if you accidentally deleted a file, quickly recover it, otherwise the file might be overwritten by new ones and will be irreversible after that.

Organize Inbox (or Facebook) E-mails Into Different Folders... Automatically

2010-04-03T14:35:00.004+08:00

Having problem with your inbox that's accumulating e-mails equivalent to Mount. Everest already? And now you're trying to figure out how to manage them. 2 thoughts always comes to mind to an average e-mail user : Do I constantly check my e-mails so I can mark them "Read"? or so that I can avoid unnecessary e-mails by deleting them? I say, is it too much to ask for both? Plus another feature, which is sorting them into folders, AND doing ALL this automatically? Is that hard? I think not.

In Hotmail, or now called Windows Live Mail, there is are options which most users have never thought of before : 1. Sorting all your e-mails into different folders... 2. Automatically.

Step 1 Step 2

Step 3 Step 4

Step 5 Step 6

Ctrl + Click To Enlarge Pic In New Window

The steps are simple (if not so, the purpose of this blog would've been gone) :

Sign in to your Hotmail (make sure to click SSL on the bottom left to avoid spam)
Click "Options" > "More Options"
Under "Customize your e-mail", choose "Automatically sort e-mail into folders"
Click "New Filter"
Choose where in the e-mail you want to categorize accordingly into the folder. Ex: categorize sk&83njks@facebookmail.com into a "Facebook" folder, so what you do is select "From address" and type "facebookmail.com" in the empty space for you to type on the right. (you should be able to understand the other options like "From name" "Subject"...)
Scroll down > choose "New Folder" & type name of the folder > "Save"...& done! (or choose "Delete these messages" if you never want to see them again)

You should see a new filter for what you have choosen, and on your Hotmail main page, you will now see the new folders you have created below "Inbox".

If you just want to sort your current inbox mails into folders for now, you can create the folders first like this :

In the left panel where the "Inbox" word is, scroll down and click "Manage Folders"
In "Manage Folders", the buttons "New", "Create", "Delete" are on the top > "Save"
After saving, you can just drag the e-mails in "Inbox" to the folders you want to put in on the left.

MiniTips : Select All Friends In Facebook

2010-03-27T10:08:00.001+08:00

Insert Javascript code in the address bar & hit "Enter"...

...& all your friends will be selected

Trying to select all your friends in the "Suggest to Friends" window but realise there's no button to do that? You can just use this javascript to do just that. This function is usually useful when you're trying to suggest a fan page to all your friends, with some having to require you to do this to use their "special" function.

javascript:elms=document.getElementById('friends').getElementsByTagName('li');for(var fid in elms){if(typeof elms[fid] === 'object'){fs.click(elms[fid]);}}

//Think Simple.//

See All Your Fb Contacts In One Place

2010-03-21T21:00:00.003+08:00

What? Are you tired of having to go to the "Home" page of Facebook to see other people's update? Or you only want to see certain people of your liking's update? Here, I'm going to introduce you an extension that integrates Facebook with your browser. Notice : this is available for Google Chrome only, so if you want to continue as additional reading, it's OK.

Seeing your friends updates in one place, without leaving your current tab. All you need to do to see your friends updates is just one click away. That is, the "Fb mural" icon on the top right of your Chrome browser.

Choose only certain people you want to see updates from, and never again have to check by having to click and find their profiles all over the place. Just choose from the "Add Friends to the Mural" and see your friends updates on the mural by just clicking on them.

Reply to all your friends in the same spot. See them, comment them, that's how America did it, and it pretty worked out well so far. Just kidding, took this out of Iron Man's saying on his "Jericho" weapon. The extension offers both "Like" AND "Comment" on each of the updates.

Steps :

Go to Google Chrome's extension collection website
Install it (tutorials will be given after install) ...& done!